PRESS RELEASE LET US ACT TOGETHER TO STRENGTHEN PUBLIC CONFIDENCE AND TRUST IN THE 2016 ELECTORAL PROCESS

1. N E W S L E T T E R D A T ES P E C I A L P O I N T S
O F I N T E R E S T :
 Editor-in-Chief
 Commentaries
 Past Events
 Upcoming Events
Volume 1, Issue 4, July 8 2016
Our first point is that the enormous independence con-
ferred on the EC by the Constitution places on it a cor-
responding responsibility to be transparent and ac-
countable to the public. Currently, public trust and con-
fidence in the EC is relatively low. This can partly be
attributed to the lack of proactive communication by
the EC with the public, hence the need for openness
and transparency. In August 2013, the Supreme Court
recommended important administrative reforms needed
to improve elections administration. Subsequently in
January 2016, the Panel of Experts set up by the EC on
the integrity of the 2012 BVR also submitted its report
to the Commission with some recommendations.
So far, the EC has not communicated swiftly and proac-
tively with the public on the status of implementation of
the reforms and recommendations. This has left the
larger Ghanaian public uniformed and therefore open to
rumours, allegations and suspicions. We are therefore
calling on the EC to act expeditiously to account to the
people of Ghana on the implementation of the expected
reforms and the extent to which those measures have
strengthened the Institution for the 2016 elections. Sec-
ondly, it would be useful if the EC were to publish how
. . . . .. .
PRESS RELEASE
LET US ACT TOGETHER TO STRENGTHEN PUBLIC CONFIDENCE AND
TRUST IN THE 2016 ELECTORAL PROCESS
Released on Thursday, July 7, 2016
The Supreme Court’s order to the Electoral Commission (EC) on the removal of identified
NHIS card users from the Biometric Voters Register (BVR) kicks off the much awaited
process of improving the integrity of the BVR. With four months to the elections, it is impera-
tive that further improvement in the electoral process is not stalled by the lack of adequate in-
formation on all aspects of the process. It is the firm belief of the Institute for Democratic Gov-
ernance (IDEG) and the Civic Forum Initiative (CFI) that strengthening confidence and public
trust in the electoral process is the collective responsibility of the (EC), as well as other State
Institutions, the Political parties and the electorate at large. However, in that respect what the
EC does from this time forth would be crucial in setting the tone and direction of enhancing the
integrity of the electoral process.
This week, IDEG received the Equiv-
alency Determination (ED) Certifi-
cate. This ED certification means
that IDEG is now equivalent to a
U.S. public charity and can there-
fore access U.S. based funding to
support our democratic govern-
ance work.
Of course, this certification opens
our very first opportunity with Ford
Foundation to support voter en-
gagement and citizens’ active par-
ticipation in the 2016 elections.
IDEG is proud to have received this
certification as it would go a long
way to enhance our capacity to
deliver our mission.
Kofi Awity
EDITORIAL
I N S I D E T H I S
I S S U E :
Press State-
ment: Let us
act together to
strenghten
public confi-
dence and
trust in the
2016 electorral
process.
1
Brokering
Peace; the role
of the Civic
Forum Initia-
tive —Elom
Tamakloe
3
Tinkering with
the parame-
ters of political
communica-
tion: The revo-
lutionary role
of new me-
dia—Benjamin
Danso
3
Press State-
ment: Manifes-
to Preparation
and Program-
ming Clinic for
Small Parties.
5
Upcoming
Events
6
Past Events
6

2. N E W S L E T T E R D A T E
. . .. .
it intends to carry out the 5th
July 2016 order of the Supreme Court and also educate the public
on the impending exhibition of the provisional BVR which is scheduled to commence on 18th
July 2016. The EC should also not hesitate to call on civil society and the public for assistance to
enable it to deliver a free, fair and transparent elections in November 2016. We are persuaded
that such actions by the EC would go a long way in increasing public trust and confidence in the
execution of its mandate.
The task ahead in increasing public confidence and trust in the electoral processes and the EC,
however, cannot be the sole responsibility of the EC. Every citizen who qualifies to vote and has
registered to do so has a patriotic duty to contribute in this regard. We are now at a very cru-
cial phase of exhibiting the BVR for the 2016 elections. The EC is expected to display the provi-
sional BVR at designated exhibition centres throughout the country and every citizen registered
to vote is encouraged to go to the appropriate centre to CHECK and CONFIRM their registra-
tion details.
It is on record that the turnout of registered voters at exhibition centres in the past is much
lower than voter turnout on election day, which on average is about 80%. This year, as part of
efforts to boost public confidence in the BVR, all citizens should endeavour to go and CHECK
and CONFIRM their details. The EC intends to exhibit the provisional BVR for up to three
weeks. Every citizen should consider it a patriotic duty to patronize the exhibition. It should be
our collective determination to ensure that this time around the turnout is higher than the av-
erage 80 percent recorded in presidential and parliamentary elections.
Such a high turnout would convince the majority of registered voters that the provisional BVR
has a high degree of accuracy. If that should happen it would persuade the majority of the elec-
torate to actively protect their mandate against the possibility of manipulation and fraud.
For IDEG and CFI, we think having such an inclusive participation would enhance the integrity
of the BVR. Therefore, we strongly urge all citizens, political parties, NCCE, CHRAJ, traditional
leaders, Assembly men and women, Members of Parliament media houses, CSOs, faith-based
organizations, business associations, professional bodies, trade unions, employers, the youth,
Persons with Disabilities (PWD’s), tertiary students’ associations, teachers’ association individu-
als and groups to contribute to educating and mobilizing citizens to participate in the exhibition
exercise. This would make the exercise more inclusive. We must all complement the efforts of
the EC in this endeavor. If this civic duty is performed on a larger scale, it would be the strate-
gic thing to do to to boost confidence and trust in the BVR for the 2016.
“….This year,
as part of ef-
forts to boost
public confi-
dence in the
BVR, all citi-
zens should
endeavour to
g o a n d
CHECK and
C O N F I R M
their details.
The EC in-
tends to ex-
hibit the pro-
visional BVR
for up to
three weeks.
Every citizen
should consid-
er it a patriot-
ic duty to pat-
ronize the
exhibition. “

3. P A G E 3
.
Brokering Peace; the role of
the Civic Forum Initiative—
Elom Tettey Tamaklo
The road to peaceful Presidential and Par-
liamentary elections this year calls for the
collective effort of various individuals with
different worldviews, contributing in the
pursuit of peace. More than ever, there is
the need to ensure that the division and
misunderstandings that exist among the
electorate, electoral monitoring bodies
(EMBs) and political aspirants are resolved
quickly in order to ensure a peaceful gen-
eral election.
In light of this, the Civic Forum Initiative
(CFI), one of the leading coalitions of Civil
Society Organizations, chaired by Maj. Gen.
Carl Coleman (Rtd), met on the 30th
of
June 2016 to discuss issues pertaining to
the upcoming elections. High priority on
the agenda was sharing a work plan with
other members which will contribute in
ensuring a violence-free election for the
country. In order to harmonise the work-
plan of CFI constituents (individual CSOs)
with the bigger work-plan of the coalitions,
the Chair urged members to submit their
election work – plan early so that where
possible, it would be integrated into the
bigger CFI work –plan. The objective is to
avoid duplication of works that will be
counted as a coalition project.
The chair and members brainstormed on
how to build the confidence of the elec-
torate in the Electoral Commission (EC).
The EC has to be seen as a legitimate elec-
tion management body that acts. Members
agreed to release a statement that calls for
the EC to be forthcoming with information
and their actions to gain the public confi-
dence and trust as well as the support of
CSOs. The call is also to request from the
EC, greater accountability and transparency
on what has been done since 2013, to
strengthen the EC for the upcoming elec-
tions as well as challenges faced. The Coali-
tion also condemns the negative attacks on
the EC Chair. It is important that her integri-
ty is upheld.
The members also recommended encourag-
ing the electorate to participate in the exhi-
bition exercise because it is their civic right.
In addition to these actions put forward by
the team, there was also a suggestion to
partner with other interest groups such as
Women’s Aglow, Occupy Ghana and Full
Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship amongst
others, to aid in championing patronage of
the exhibition excercise. The meeting con-
cluded with members of the various organi-
zations reaffirming their continuous support
for the coalition’s initiatives and programs
aimed at ensuring a peaceful election in No-
vember 2016.
Tinkering with the parameters
of political communication:
The revolutionary role of new
media—Benjamin Danso
The creation of new forms of digital social
media during the first decade of the 21st
century has transformed the ways in which
many people communicate and share infor-
mation. However, the effects that the emer-
gence of social media platforms, such as Fa-
cebook, Twitter or YouTube as well as blog-
ging environments and online discussion fora,
have had on political processes remain con-
troversial and not well understood. Indeed,
much discourse in this field seems to be driv-
en as much by political ideology itself, as it
does by rigorous academic enquiry. There is
a strong will to believe that these social me-
dia are indeed making political processes
more democratic, and yet the evidence is
not always there to support such assertions.
– Professor Tim Unwin
In general terms, the purpose and function of
every political communication endeavour in
a democratic state is to sway public opinion,
mobilze popular support and ultimately win
In light of this, the
Civic Forum Initia-
tive (CFI), one of
the leading coali-
tions of Civil Soci-
ety Organizations
in the nation has
sat in deliberation
concerning the
fate of our nation.
High priority on
the agenda was
creating a work
plan which will
aid in ensuring a
violence-free elec-
tion for the na-
tion. Chaired by
Major General Nii
Carl Coleman, the
team also dis-
cussed building
the confidence of
the electorate in
the Electoral Com-
mission as one of
the ways in ensur-
ing an incident
free election.

4. P A G E 4
political power through elections. The
media, therefore, is a very powerful
tool within the arsenal of the politician
towards this end. Universally, trends
are evident and similar behavioural
patterns can be discerned in the way
the media is used to either gain or
wrest political power. In every true
democratic system, the media take on
the role of the fourth power. On the
one hand, they tend to serve as a con-
trol mechanism in checking those in
power and report to the citizens, on
the other hand. This dynamic role de-
mands a certain degree of institutional
independence from the political sys-
tem.
Practically, however, there is an obvi-
ous relationship of interdependence
between the media and political sys-
tems. This relationship is inherent in
the symbiotic trade-off where infor-
mation from the political system to fill
media content is exchanged for cover-
age in the media system, and vice ver-
sa. The media is dependent on the sup-
ply of information from politics, while
politicians are dependent on the media
conveying their message to the elec-
torate. In a democracy, the relation-
ship is not linear. The citizens them-
selves complete the triangle of political
communication, in the first instance
merely as passive recipients.
This passive recipient position of citi-
zens has changed over the past decade
on account of interest groups in civil
society strengthening organized public
participation. The introduction of the
Internet and mobile telecommunica-
tions in beginning of the millennium
has significantly altered this communi-
cation structure. The original struc-
tures have shifted from a ‘hypodermic
__ __
inoculation’, where citizens are at the receiving
end of the communication process to a poly-
centric communications system. Thus, it can be
said that political communication by the popu-
lation is greater today that the mere expres-
sion of will in polls. The new media, propelled
by innovations in technology, have promoted
citizens’ position to that of equal partners in
the communications structure.
This revolution in political communication has
served as a catalyst for a new phenomenon
known as ‘citizen journalism’ where bloggers
and social media activists are redefining and
further widening the active role citizens play in
completing the communication triangle. There
are currently, over 250 major active social me-
dia networking websites affording citizens not
only a fantasy escape to vent their frustrations
with the political system, but also the oppor-
tunity to contribute to discussions within the
public sphere.
Many political actors in budding democracies
realizing this are without cease exploiting the
new media revolution as it is proving by the
day that it is an effective way of mobilizing citi-
zens. Kenya’s 2002 and 2007 elections, Zimba-
bwe’s 2008 elections and the 2009 South Afri-
can elections have been reported to be peri-
ods where new media political communication
were heavily deployed during the campaigns.
Civil Society on the other hand, are altering
their advocacy campaigns to make more use of
social media for public mobilization.
These benefits notwithstanding, there are justi-
fiable fears regarding the abuse of social media,
especially when regulatory mechanisms are
generally lax and sometimes non-existent. Re-
gardless, the revolution is already here and
innovations in technology are going to move at
an even faster pace. There will be no point
swimming against a tide as heavy and pervasive
as new media. Why should political communi-
cation and governance in general be left out?
:..Thus, it can be
said that political
communication
by the population
is greater today
that the mere
expression of will
in polls. The new
media, propelled
by innovations in
technology, have
promoted citi-
zens’ position to
that of equal
partners in the
communications
structure. “

5. P A G E 5
Press Statement:
Manifesto
Preparation and
Programming
Clinic for Small
Parties.
__ __

6. P A G E 6
__ __
IDEG THIS WEEK - EVENTS
July 4th—8th July— 2016
Upcoming Events
1. Meeting with Konrad Adeneur Founda-
tion, 4 July, 2016, 12pm, Boardroom
2. Cocoa Life Third Quarter Implement-
ing partners meeting, 4 July,
2016,10am, World vision office
3. Brainstorming session on the Cocoa
Life mobilization of GIFnet members, 5
July, 2016, 2 pm, Boardroom.
4. Manifesto Clinic for Small Political par-
ties, 7-9 July, 2016. Afrikiko River front
Hotel
Past Events,
JUNE 27th –JULY 1st 2016
1. First GII National Anti – Corruption fo-
rum, 28th June 2016, 0:00am, La Palm Roy-
al Beach Hotel
2. SoTu Meeting, 27th – 30th June 2016, Ken-
ya, Nairobi
3. Meeting on the ECOWAS strategic docu-
ment, 30 June, 2016, 2:00pm, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs
Kofi Awity—Editor in Chief
Yvonne Boaten—Editor
Maj. Gen. Carl Nii Coleman (RTD).—Member
Professor S.N Woode –Member
Isaac Haruna—Member
Elom Tettey Tamaklo—Member
Anthony Esua-Mensah —-Creative Director
©IDEG Photo/Walter Adamah. All Rights Re-
served
Our Online Platforms (IDEG)
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/
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Flickr: Institute for Democratic Governance -
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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/
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SlideShare: http://www.slideshare.net/IDEG
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Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/
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governance---ideg-gahana?trk=biz-
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Website: http://www.ideg.org/newideg/
index.php
Google+: IDEG Ghana
Whatsapp: IDEG Online +233-(0)54-435-
7752
Amazon/iTunes/Podcast: Institute for Demo-
cratic Governance - IDEG Ghana
Social Media, ICT for Development and Good
Governance
Address:
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No. 24 Garden Street,
Intersection, Okine Avenue
Ambassadorial Enclave, East Legon
P. O. Box CT 5767
Cantonments Accra, Ghana
Tel: +233-302-543320/543295
I N S I D E T H I S
I S S U E :
Press State-
ment: Let us
act together to
strenghten
public confi-
dence and
trust in the
2016 electorral
process.
1
Brokering
Peace; the role
of the Civic
Forum Initia-
tive —Elom
Tamakloe
3
Tinkering with
the parame-
ters of political
communica-
tion: The revo-
lutionary role
of new me-
dia—Benjamin
Danso
3
Press State-
ment: Manifes-
to Preparation
and Program-
ming Clinic for
Small Parties.
5
Upcoming
Events
6
Past Events
6